Nanny cams of all shapes and sizes

BrickHouse hidden cameras and video surveillance gear let you be there — even when you’re not

Affordable Peace of Mind for Parents and Guardians

These days, it's almost a given that both parents will be working outside the home, often leaving young children with a nanny or babysitter for hours at a time. In most cases, there are no issues with this arrangement, and the caregivers will perform their duties with professionalism and dedication. But knowing for sure that your child is safe and receiving proper care is the most significant concern a new parent can deal with.

In the United States, there over five cases of child death due to abuse or neglect per day, a number that has risen dramatically in the past 15 years. Short of being with your child every second of the day, a nanny cam is the single best preventive measure you can take to ensure her safety.

Choose the Best Nanny Cam for Your Needs

Nanny cams come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. In fact, you'll be amazed how many common household items -- from air purifiers to tissue boxes -- can house a hidden camera and built-in digital video recorder. Features and pricing vary among models, so when choosing a nanny cam, it's important to consider the environment where you'll be placing the camera. The characteristics of the room (or rooms) you want to monitor will dictate the features you'll need.

How large is the room? Is the space well-lit? How much time will your child and his caregiver be spending in the room during a typical day? These are all important questions you'll want to answer before you decide on the right nanny cam for you. For more detailed information, see our hidden camera and video surveillance shopping guides.

There are a number of kid-friendly items that function as hidden cameras. For example, an alarm clock or digital picture frame will look perfectly in place in a young child's room and can record high-resolution video, even in low-light conditions. Other simple devices, like a coat hook or an AC adapter can be placed covertly in any room and go unnoticed. All of these devices feature motion-activated recording, so they'll only capture video when people are present in the space. This conserves battery life (for cameras that don't run on AC power) and saves you from shuttling through hours of video when there's nothing happening in the room. All your video footage is saved to a standard SD card for later review on any computer.

Make Your Own Nanny Cam

Our best-selling nanny cam, the Camscura Micro, is a low-cost solution for covert recording. This tiny black box hidden camera can be discreetly placed in any room right out of the box, and it's also specifically designed to fit in almost any housing you can imagine. You can turn a book, a stuffed animal or a potted plant into a custom nanny cam in minutes. The Camscura Micro features 24 hours of motion-activated recording on a single charge, up to three weeks of standby battery life, low-light recording and three customizable recording modes.

View Live Video Over the Internet from Anywhere

If you want to see what's happening in your home in real time over the Internet, BrickHouse offers a number of network camera solutions. Also known as IP cameras, network cameras allow you to watch your nanny play with your daughter in your living room right from your desk at work.

IP cameras allow you to connect to the Internet via a broadband network and remotely view live video from any web browser anywhere in the world. Once your system is set up, the only requirement is Internet access. You can even monitor one or more video cameras or DVRs from your smartphone.

These versatile devices come in a number of hidden camera form factors (tissue boxes, alarm clocks, etc.) Some require a physical cable connection, others are wireless and transmit their data via radio frequency (RF) signals or over a local WiFi network.

Think of IP cameras as mini computers that happen to have sophisticated optics built in. They come with their own software and need to be configured to a network in order to function. The network configuration is a relatively simple process for some devices; generally set up is no more complex than configuring a WiFi network. Other models require a good working knowledge of Internet technology to get them up and running.

Whichever model you choose, a nanny cam from BrickHouse Security can give you the peace of mind you deserve and the confidence you need to safely leave your loved ones in someone else's care.